Stanford University

Active vs. Passive Urbanization: Does Urbanization Type Affect Early Childhood Cognitive and Language Development? Evidence from Peri-Urban China

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China’s urbanization has created growing peri-urban communities, where children face challenges to early childhood development (ECD) despite proximity to developed urban areas. Little is known about how the environmental factors of ECD differ between rural migrants and new urban residents. To address this, we sampled 77 peri-urban households with 18–24-month-old Han Chinese children to examine the associations between early cognitive and language development, parental self-efficacy, stimulating parenting practices, and the home language environment measured with Language Environment Analysis (LENA). We find that rural migrants and new urban residents exhibited no significant difference in any child or household characteristic except parental residency. There was no significant difference in the family environment factors or early cognitive or language development, either. However, parental self-efficacy and stimulating parenting practices both predicted better cognitive and language development in rural migrant households, whereas only conversation turn counts predicted better language development in new urban resident households.

Journal Publisher
Applied Developmental Science
Authors
Hanwen Zhang
Scott Rozelle

Changes in Rural China's Caregiver Outcomes, Behaviours, and Health Services Utilisation Following the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Observational Study

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Background
Under-resourced communities in rural China have long faced limitations in accessing and utilising caregiver and child healthcare (CCH). The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated health inequities globally, while its precise impacts on CCH remain understudied. We report differences in parental migration, maternal mental health, household and nutrition expenditures, child feeding practices, and prenatal, postnatal, and childbirth care following pandemic lockdowns in rural China.

Methods
We compared two groups of families with children who grew to the age of six months either before or during lockdowns. We enrolled eligible households from 80 rural townships, randomly selected from four poverty-designated counties in Sichuan Province, China. We interviewed the control group of primary caregivers in November and December of 2019 (pre-COVID-19), and the case group in May of 2020 (approximately five months into the pandemic). Statistical analyses included t tests and linear regressions with adjustments. P-values <0.05 were considered statistically significant.

Results
Compared to the control group, the case group presented significantly lower paternal migration and more favourable maternal mental health. Caregiving behaviours (including household and nutrition expenditures) and child feeding practices did not differ, except for higher spending on infant micronutrient supplements. Prenatal health services utilisation, including home visits, was slightly higher, while postnatal services utilisation was lower.

Conclusions
Our findings suggest that many aspects of CCH in rural China were similar or improved during the early pandemic lockdowns. These data highlight the importance of promoting targeted public health interventions, such as mental health support initiatives, accessible perinatal care options, and family-centred education campaigns, in under-resourced communities and during future healthcare crises.

Journal Publisher
Journal of Global Health
Authors
Gary Darmstadt
Yunwei Chen
Scott Rozelle

The Economists Lists "The Highest Exam" as One of the Best Books of 2025

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The Economist included SCCEI Co-Director Hongbin Li's new book in their lineup of the best books of 2025. Here's what they had to say:

"The Highest Exam: How the Gaokao Shapes China. By Ruixue Jia and Hongbin Li with Claire Cousineau. 

The gaokao—China’s university entrance exam—shapes much of the country’s society, from pay to politics. Read this thoughtful book to learn how the test is the first of many tournaments in which the Chinese have to compete over the course of their lives."

See the full list: https://www.economist.com/culture/2025/11/20/the-best-books-of-2025 

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A girl in China sits at a classroom desk taking a test.
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Hongbin Li Contributes to the WSJ and Previews New Book "The Highest Exam"

Co-authors Hongbin Li and Ruixue Jia write for the WSJ, "The Test That Rules Chinese Society: The gaokao is China’s college entrance exam, but it shapes the country and its people far beyond the classroom."
Hongbin Li Contributes to the WSJ and Previews New Book "The Highest Exam"
Yiqing Xu and Hongbin Li sit on a stage during a SCCEI event.
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China's Test-based Education System is a Mirror of Society

Hongbin Li and Ruixue Jia joined Yiqing Xu for a fireside chat on their newly published book, "The Highest Exam: How the Gaokao Shapes China." Watch the recording and see event highlights.
China's Test-based Education System is a Mirror of Society
Hundreds of students sit at desks in rows taking an exam.
Q&As

Understanding China’s Gaokao Exam

Authors Hongbin Li and Ruixue Jia break down their new book, "The Highest Exam: How the Gaokao Shapes China", in an interview with Harvard University Press.
Understanding China’s Gaokao Exam
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On November 20, 2025 The Economist published their list of the best books of 2025 and included Hongbin Li's new book, "The Highest Exam: How the Gaokao Shapes China" in the line-up.

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Parenting Quality and Early Childhood Development: Evidence from Different Rural Subpopulations in China

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Background
The quality of parenting can affect the developmental outcomes of young children. This study aims to investigate the associations between parenting quality and the early childhood development of children under age 3 across four major rural subpopulations in China.

Methods
Using a stratified cluster sampling method, 760 children aged 6–36 months and their primary caregivers in four rural subpopulations from four provinces and a metropolis in China were surveyed. Child development was assessed by the Third Edition of the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development. Parenting quality was measured using the Family Care Indicators. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, t-tests, multivariable regression analysis, and linear regression analysis.

Results
Across the four subpopulations, prevalences of delays of the sample children in four domains — cognition, language, social-emotional, and motor development are 52%, 45%, 52%, and 19%, respectively. The proportion of children with any type of delay is 82%, while over half (53%) have delays in at least two areas, and 27% have delays in three or more areas. Child’s mother as the primary caregiver, maternal education levels, and family asset values are all positively associated with the quality of parenting. Notably, low levels of parenting quality in rural China are linked to high rates of developmental delays.

Conclusions
This study demonstrates that the level of parenting quality is significantly associated with early childhood developmental outcomes. Results highlight the need for raising investments in family care to improve early childhood development in different rural subpopulations in China.

Journal Publisher
BMC Psychology
Authors
Scott Rozelle

SCCEI 2024-25 Annual Report

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After several years of rapid growth, the 2024–25 academic year has marked a new chapter for the Stanford Center on China’s Economy and Institutions (SCCEI) as we emerge as one of the world’s leading empirically grounded research centers on contemporary China. Today, SCCEI encompasses four vibrant research programs—China Labor, Income, and Population; Political Economy and Governance; the Rural Education Action Program; and Sustainability and Energy Transition.

But SCCEI has grown to be much more than a home for rigorous research. It has become a community of learning, teaching, sharing, and support—among Stanford students and faculty, our visiting scholars, and a global audience that engages with our work far beyond campus.

Read our annual report for the 2024-25 academic year to learn about the research, programming, and impact we've made this year. 

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Annual Reports
November 2024

SCCEI 2023-24 Annual Report

SCCEI 2023-24 Annual Report
Annual Reports
November 2023

SCCEI 2022-23 Annual Report

SCCEI 2022-23 Annual Report
Annual Reports
December 2022

SCCEI 2021-22 Annual Report

SCCEI 2021-22 Annual Report
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The SCCEI 2024-25 Annual Report is now available. Learn about the research, programming, and impact we've made this year. 

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SCCEI Seminar | Melanie Meng Xue

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SCCEI Seminar Series (Winter 2026)


Friday, March 6, 2026 | 12:00 pm -1:20 pm Pacific Time
Goldman Room E409, Encina Hall, 616 Jane Stanford Way

Topic will be announced prior to the event. Please register for the event to receive email updates and add it to your calendar. Lunch will be provided.


About the Speaker 
 

Melanie Meng Xue profile.

Professor Melanie Meng Xue is Assistant Professor of Economic History at the London School of Economics and Political Science and a Research Affiliate at the Centre for Economic Policy Research. Her research lies at the intersection of political economy, gender, culture, and economic history, with a regional focus on early modern and modern China. Her work explores the rise of women, the persistence of authoritarian regimes, and the long-term impact of affirmative action and cultural values on economic and political inequality.

Her articles examine topics such as folklore and proverbs as sources of cultural transmission, and she is currently working on a book project analyzing cultural values across ethnic groups and regions in China. Professor Xue has published widely, and her research has influenced both academic and public discourse on the role of historical narratives and norms in shaping institutional development. She received her Ph.D. in Economics and has mentored research assistants who have gone on to top Ph.D. and pre-doctoral programs. During the 2025–26 academic year, she will be on sabbatical, spending the fall semester at Yale University.


Questions? Contact Xinmin Zhao at xinminzhao@stanford.edu
 

Goldman Room E409, Encina Hall

Melanie Meng Xue, Assistant Professor of Economic History, London School of Economics
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SCCEI Seminar | Shang-Jin Wei

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SCCEI Seminar Series (Winter 2026)


Friday, February 20, 2026 | 12:00 pm -1:20 pm Pacific Time
Goldman Room E409, Encina Hall, 616 Jane Stanford Way

Topic will be announced prior to the event. Please register for the event to receive email updates and add it to your calendar. Lunch will be provided.


About the Speaker 
 

Shang-Jin Wei headshot

Professor Shang-Jin Wei is the N.T. Wang Professor of Chinese Business and Economy at Columbia University, with joint appointments in the Graduate School of Business and the School of International and Public Affairs. A leading expert on international finance, trade, and macroeconomics, his research focuses on globalization and the Chinese economy. His work has been published in top journals, including the American Economic Review, the Journal of Political Economy, and the Journal of Finance.

From 2014 to 2016, Professor Wei served as Chief Economist of the Asian Development Bank, where he led economic research and policy support for regional cooperation initiatives. He previously held positions at the International Monetary Fund, Harvard University, the Brookings Institution, and the World Bank. He is the recipient of several prestigious awards, including the Sun Yefang Prize, the Zhang Peifang Prize, and the Gregory Chow Award. He received his Ph.D. in Economics and M.S. in Finance from the University of California, Berkeley.
 


Questions? Contact Xinmin Zhao at xinminzhao@stanford.edu
 

Goldman Room E409, Encina Hall

Shang-Jin Wei, Professor of Chinese Business and Economy, Columbia University
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SCCEI Seminar | Valerie Karplus

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SCCEI Seminar Series (Winter 2026)


Friday, January 30, 2026 | 12:00 pm -1:20 pm Pacific Time
Goldman Room E409, Encina Hall, 616 Jane Stanford Way

Topic will be announced prior to the event. Please register for the event to receive email updates and add it to your calendar. Lunch will be provided.


About the Speaker 
 

Valerie Karplus headshot

Valerie Karplus is a professor in the Department of Engineering and Public Policy and associate director at the Wilton E. Scott Institute for Energy Innovation.

Karplus studies resource and environmental management in organizations operating in diverse national and industry contexts, with a focus on the role of institutions and management practices in explaining performance. Areas of expertise include innovation in global corporate and industrial supply chains, regional approaches to workforce and economic revitalization, and the integrated design and evaluation of public policies. Karplus has taught courses on public policy analysis, global business strategy and organization, entrepreneurship, and the political economy of energy transitions. At CMU, she runs the Laboratory for Energy and OrganizationsOpens in new window. Karplus is also a faculty affiliate of the MIT Energy InitiativeOpens in new window, the MIT Center for Energy and Environmental Policy ResearchOpens in new window, and the MIT Center for Sustainability Science and Strategy.

She has previously worked in the development policy section of the German Federal Foreign Office in Berlin, Germany, as a Robert Bosch Foundation Fellow, and in the biotechnology industry in Beijing, China, as a Luce Scholar. From 2011 to 2016, she co-founded and directed the MIT-Tsinghua China Energy and Climate Project a five-year research effort focused on analyzing the design of energy and climate change policy in China, and its domestic and global impacts. Karplus previously served on the faculty at the MIT Sloan School of Management.

Karplus holds a BS in biochemistry and political science from Yale University and a Ph.D. in engineering systems from MIT.


Questions? Contact Xinmin Zhao at xinminzhao@stanford.edu
 

Goldman Room E409, Encina Hall

Valerie Karplus, Professor, Carnegie Melon University
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Qin Wang

Encina Hall East, 5th Floor

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Visiting Student Researcher, Stanford Center on China's Economy and Institutions
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Qin Wang is a Visiting Student Researcher at the Stanford Center on China’s Economy and Institutions (2025–26). He is pursuing his Ph.D. at the Northeast Normal University. His research focuses on rural teachers’ professional development and rural education policy. In his recent work, he has paid particular attention to the optimization of teacher resource allocation in regions experiencing a decline in school-age populations. By integrating demographic forecasting, institutional design, and technological support, his studies aim to address the challenges of uneven teacher distribution caused by demographic shifts.
 

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The Highest Exam: How the Gaokao Shapes China

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Book cover "The Hghest Exam"

Each year, more than ten million students across China pin their hopes on the gaokao, the nationwide college entrance exam. Unlike in the United States, where standardized tests are just one factor, in China college admission is determined entirely by gaokao performance. It is no wonder the test has become a national obsession.

Drawing on extensive surveys, historical research, and economic analysis, and informed by Ruixue Jia and Hongbin Li’s own experiences of the gaokao gauntlet, The Highest Exam reveals how China’s education system functions as a centralized tournament. It explains why preparation for the gaokao begins even before first grade—and why, given its importance for upward mobility, Chinese families are behaving rationally when they devote immense quantities of money and effort to acing the test. It shows how the exam system serves the needs of the Chinese Communist Party and drives much of the country’s economic growth. And it examines the gaokao’s far-reaching effects on China’s society, as the exam’s promise of meritocracy encourages citizens to focus on individual ability at the expense of considering socioeconomic inequalities.

What’s more, as the book makes clear, the gaokao is now also shaping debates around education in the United States. As Chinese-American families bring the expectations of the highest exam with them, their calls for objective, transparent metrics in the education system increasingly clash with the more holistic measures of achievement used by American schools and universities.

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Combining personal narratives with decades of research, a vivid account of how the gaokao—China’s high-stakes college admissions test—shapes that society and influences education debates in the United States.

Authors
Hongbin Li
Book Publisher
Harvard University Press
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